Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

6 months exclusively BF- do I really need to introduce solids???

19 replies

aurorec · 12/03/2009 14:34

DS has just turned 6 months today.
He's doing great on breastmilk, he sleeps 10-8.30 every night and never cries.

Quite honestly I can't really be bothered to start with solids as there doesn't seem to be any real need, but a friend of mine got me slightly concerned. Her pediatrician mentioned that new research shows that it is important for baby's growth and taste development to start introducing solids at 6 months.

Any thoughts?

OP posts:
audreyraines · 12/03/2009 14:45

sounds like you're doing amazingly aurorec. I don't think they need to eat many solids at that age, but sometimes they might like to explore texture and taste. you know your ds, so can probably tell if he's interested in that yet. if not, no real hurry i'd say.

have you thought about doing baby led weaning? its a really low key approach to weaning and lets baby take the lead in terms of eating and getting ready for food.

Original poster
aurorec · 12/03/2009 14:45

How exactly does it work?

OP posts:
audreyraines · 12/03/2009 14:47

have a look at this wonderful site

baby led weaning

basically you give them finger food to feed themselves as they choose and avoid the whole pureed foods thing.

i can heartily recommend it.

Original poster
aurorec · 12/03/2009 14:54

Thanks for that!

OP posts:
Homebird8 · 12/03/2009 15:00

Having experienced baby led weaning the scond time round I'd say it's much easier than the puree route. As the for six months thing, it's not like Cinderella - they don't suddenly need solids at the stroke of midnight. Does he reach for your food yet? If so (and it's not too hot) then let him play with it. Some might even go in!

audreyraines · 12/03/2009 15:10

yeah, i would just try eating your meals with him there, and if he seems interested or is grabbing things, let him chew or suck on something for a bit. then you can go from there.

Original poster
aurorec · 12/03/2009 16:05

He's never 'sat' with us at the dinner table yet.
We tend to leave him in his bouncy seat and haven't tried him in the high chair yet.

I guess I can't get over the fact that he's so 'old' already!
With DD I was really excited about her sitting up, weaning, teething etc.

With him I'm traumatised at how quickly it's gone- I still think of him as a tiny little baby. I guess the other issue with BLW which I'm concerned about is what he can chew.

DD had 4 teeth by the time she turned 6 months- it felt more natural to give her solids. He doesn't have any teeth yet, doesn't that mean that some foods would be too 'dangerous' for him to try?

OP posts:
Dreamergirl · 12/03/2009 16:08

If he is happy with the breastmilk then that should be ok for him, sure I read somewhere that a baby can do just fine on breastmilk alone for the first year.

Never did the babyled feeding sounds good though.

audreyraines · 12/03/2009 18:22

hi, understandable concerns. there's a really great dvd by gill rapley just called baby led weaning which is quite helpful for starting out. you'd be amazed what a baby can chew with their gums. in any event, they may just suck it, mash it around and spit it out. the point with blw is that they will eat when they are ready and experimentation and learning is all part of the process. blw supports the theory that they don't actually 'need' solids as long as they are breastfed on demand until 12 months plus.
but if you're not ready and you dont' feel ds is ready, i wouldn't push it, you might feel more inclined in a few months, or when he grabs your morning toast from you!

audreyraines · 12/03/2009 18:22

ps. there are likely some blw threads on here that you could join and talk with likeminded mums and those just starting out weaning with this approach (and some veterans too!)

Homebird8 · 12/03/2009 19:35

DS2 managed to chew everything I gave him without any teeth except for meat (including mince) and, for some obscure reason, cucumber! I just watched how he managed things and left it a while when something didn't actually get eaten. At least he was trying out the flavours.

RhinestoneCowgirl · 12/03/2009 19:42

DS was a big lad and was ex bf until 6 months, then did mostly baby-led weaning (with the odd bowl of mush when my mum was around). I really felt the pressure at times from other people that he 'should' be eating more, and this time with DD I'm hoping to be a lot more relaxed. DS got to about 10 months and started eating everything in sight and pretty much hasn't stopped since.

BLW makes sense to me as the baby eats when they are developmentally ready, and having been through it once I feel confident that DD will eat when she wants to. She's only 11 weeks atm tho...

beansontoast · 12/03/2009 19:43

finger foods are great...babies love them...a toy you can eat!

really ripe fruit cut into lengths is good,my children loved pear.

in my experience there is nothing wrong with puree.im not sure what exactly the argument against them is.i fed both my children breast milk ,whole foods and purees.

i started with 'whizzed' porridge and pear i think...dee licious.

CherryChoc · 12/03/2009 19:46

Yes have a look on the weaning section on here aurorec. I believe all you should avoid is:

  • Honey (until 1 year)
  • Cow's milk (as a drink until 1 year - dairy is fine in cooking, you don't have to make mash for the family with expressed milk! )
  • Any foods which family members are severely allergic to such as peanuts.

Oh and don't give him food to play with if he is in his bouncy chair, he needs to be sitting upright or slightly forwards so if he coughs/gags on something it will fall out of his mouth, not further into his throat. (That sounds terrifying written down! It's not that bad, honest.)

CherryChoc · 12/03/2009 19:48

beansontoast, there isn't an argument against purees, it's just some people prefer to skip them out as they can be a bit of a faff.

nickymorris · 12/03/2009 19:54

My DS is 7 months old and we're doing BLW. It's fab and very sociable and fun. I don't have to spend all my evenings preparing cubes of gunk like all my friends seem to be doing and it's made me think about what I eat and be more healthy too. There is a good book which I got off Amazon called Baby Led Weaning which has the sciencey stuff and tips but is VERY readable and interesting. It gave me the confidence to stand up to my MIL when she was being very skeptical!

we started BLW at 5.5 months as DS was beginning to be interested in food, and particularly in drinking from our cups and glasses. Initially there was a lot of stuff that went on the floor and quite a lot in his hair. It is a messy way to feed so won't be good if you're a neat-freak. But he's eaten EVERYTHING I've put in front of him. DS eats everything that I do - no special foods and preparation needed. Lunch today was hummus and pita bread with taboulih (sp?) and then gooseberry yogurt to finish. This evening he had beef stew and a wholemeal bread. For the stuff like yogurt I put it on a spoon and then give him the spoon and he eats it himself.

One of the things that I really like about it is that he's in control so there will never be food battles. It works with the premise that your baby knows best. So they don't have to et everything - they just eat what they want to eat and you don't force them to do anything. If they don't fancy any lunch that day it isn't a problem and if they fancy a lot of one thing you just keep on passing it their way! At this stage he's still getting the majority of his nutrients from milk, although I think his consumption is starting to decrease - this works well with breastfeeding as it means your supply naturally tapers to the point where your DC is no longer requesting and you come to a natural end of your BF.

Sorry to go on but I'm VERY enthusiastic about this - read the book, sit your DC at the table with the rest of the family and see what they do - and most importantly enjoy!!

MamaMaiasaura · 12/03/2009 20:19

Can i just put up my hand and say BLW been absolutely fantastic here too. No need to start solids till baby wants them. Ds2 is now nearing 15 months and still breastfed when he wants and also enjoys he solid food too. It is messy but hadnt really had to mess around with spoon feeding him purees and he can feed himself with spoon and simply enjoys mealtimes. Love the fact that there are no stressing or hang ups about food and it is something he actively part takes in, not something passive.

DitsyMe · 13/03/2009 09:54

Another BLW fan here too!
'Food under ones is just for fun!'
If your baby isn't ready for solids then they aren't going to be swallowing much. Basically they'll explore, suck, mash etc then spit out!
Greadually as they get older they'll swallow more.
I guess the argument against purees is that it is generally in the control of the adult rather than the child.

kazbeth · 13/03/2009 11:07

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page